Purple Moon Dust
by MidnightNinja13
Summary: Okay so it started out cuz i was bored, but its actually quite interesting... please review! after like a year its finally done! MWAHAHAHA! :D
1. Chapter 1

Er... well here it is...

**Chapter 1**

_"Come on. You can do this. They are only Genin. You are much more powerful." _These were the thoughts that ran through the mind of a young girl. Quickly making up her mind, she walked over to the small group of ninjas.

Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura were standing next to each other, watching as Hinata and Neji fought each other in the exams.

"Umm, excuse," said the girl.

All three ninjas looked up to see who had spoken. Standing before them was a girl with short, light purple hair, and lime green eyes. She wore a purple spaghetti strapped blouse and black pants, paired with black boots. On one of her hands, she wore a black glove with the Hidden Sand village sign on it. Her other hand was wrapped in cloth as though it had been bleeding. Around her leg was the Hidden Leaf village headband, and around her neck, was a black-velvet chocker; dangling from it was her clan sign.

"M-my name is Uae," she stammered.

"Hi Uae! My name is Naruto Uzumaki-believe it!" Naruto said grinning.

"My name is Sakura Haruno," Sakura added.

"Nice to meet you Naruto-san, Sakura-chan," Uae said. Then she turned to Sasuke, and froze, wide eyed.

"Hello…My name is Sas-"

"Wait." Uae interrupted. "I know you…" she paused and continued. "I-impossible! Sasuke…Uchiha?"

"Yes…? How do you know me?" Sasuke asked in confusion.

"You mean you don't remember me?" Uae asked sadly. "Think back…remember me, Sasuke-kun."

"Uae…Oh My God! Uae?!" He looked at her in awe as he remembered his childhood friend, and crush.

"You haven't changed one bit, Sasuke." Uae said smiling.

"Wait, what the heck is going on here?!" Naruto shouted.

"Uae and I are childhood friends," Sasuke said still staring at Uae. "How is it that you are here…alive?"

"I will explain everything, I promise, but right now I need your help."

"What is it?"

"I need to find a 'Gaara of the Sand'."

Sakura pointed at the sand trio: Gaara, Kankuro, and Temari. "He's over there," she said. "By the way, what the heck happened to your hand? It looks gross."

Uae turned to her. "Sakura-chan, you don't know me, and it's rude to make remarks about someone you just met. It would be as if I said 'Sakura, you have to do something about those horrid split ends!' Get it?" Then she turned her back to her and started walking toward the sand trio.

Sakura grabbed Uae's shoulder and spun her around. "I'll teach you to insult me!" Sakura yelled as she swung her arm forward to punch Uae. Then in a quick move, Uae grabbed Sakura's hand and twisted her arm. With a light push from Uae, Sakura ended up on her stomach on the floor, with Uae holding her down by Sakura's own wrist.

**To Be Continued…**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Holding down Sakura, Uae bent down and said to her, "Listen Sakura-chan. And you can ask Sasuke if this is true; he well knows. I do not like being touched. Understand?" Uae paused to see Sakura nod, and then continued. "You do well to remember that. Because the next time you touch me, Sakura-chan," as she said this, her free hand pressed down on a pressure point on Sakura's arm, causing Sakura to shout out in pain, "I will not hesitate to kill you."

"Listen to her Sakura," Sasuke said grimly. "She doesn't lie. Uae will kill you."

"Now, then. I can't have you distracting me so," Uae let go of Sakura only to perform a series of hand signs. "Moon Style! Secret Force Field Jutsu!" and immediately, purple chakra appeared, and wrapped itself around Sakura, holding her down to the floor.

"Sakura!" Naruto shouted. "Let her go!" He ran at Uae, but Sasuke held him back.

"No, Naruto," he said. "Don't be stupid. Uae will release Sakura after she attends to her business with Gaara of the Sand." Naruto muttered something crude under his breath as he sat down.

"Thank you, Sasuke-kun. I'll be back." And she turned her back to the three, and left.

As Uae came within earshot of the sand trio, her navy blue ring that was around her finger, turned blood red.

Temari was mending her giant fan, when she heard footsteps. Looking up, she exclaimed, "UAE!" and hugged her only to let go immediately. "Sorry. I forgot you don't like being touched…Uae! I can't believe it! I thought…"

"You thought what Temari?"

Hesitant, Temari continued, "I thought…I thought that Gaara had killed you."

**To Be Continued…**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

"You…you thought I was killed…by Gaara-kun?" Uae asked. Temari nodded and Uae shook her head. "You've got it all wrong, Temari. He didn't kill me. He…helped me." Temari nodded again, and pointed at her younger brother, who was sitting away from her.

"He thought he killed you. He…he hasn't been the same since…well, since then."

"Thank you, Temari." Uae said as she walked passed her.

"Well, well, well," Kankuro said as Uae stepped in front of him. "Someone call Heaven, 'cause I think they're missing an angel!"

"And Hell's missing a demon. Your pick-up lines never worked on me Kankuro. And I think they've gotten worse." Uae teased.

"Uae?"

"In the flesh," she replied grinning. "As you can see, I'm very much alive. And if you excuse me, I need to speak to your brother."

"Wait, Uae!" Kankuro said as she started walking away. "Why do you always wanna talk to him? Even when we were kids, you always came looking for him. I'm much more interesting."

She laughed at him. "I told you before, and I will tell you again, Kankuro. You're not my type."

Uae started walking, but froze when Kankuro said, "There's something else."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, after…after that day when he thought he had killed you, something happened."

"What? What happened?" Uae asked.

"The next day, our father, the 4th Kazekage, tried to have him killed. Our uncle, Yashamaru, who was particularly close to Gaara, was given the task…but he failed, and ended up dead." Kankuro paused then said, "The death of Yashamaru, and your believed death, changed Gaara. He no longer shows emotions, rarely talks, and doesn't allow anyone near him…and he believes his purpose in life…is to kill. I'm only warning you Uae. If you don't convince him it's really you fast," Kankuro looked at his younger brother who was sitting further away, he finished, "Gaara will kill you, for sure this time."

Uae gasped at him and said, "Y-you're lying! He would never do that!"

"I'm serious Uae. Gaara will kill you, and not think twice about it."

"Well…thank you for your concern, Kankuro, but I'm very capable of taking care of myself." Then she turned her back to him once more, and walked over to Gaara.

**To Be Continued…**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Back with Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura, Naruto was asking questions. "Who the heck is she anyway?! And what's this Jutsu she used on Sakura? I've never heard of 'Moon Style' before."

"Naruto, if I explain who she is, will you SHUT UP?!" Sasuke shouted. Naruto nodded, and Sasuke began.

"Uae was born during a lunar eclipse, giving her the name 'Uae' which means 'moon goddess'. Now, Uae was a curious baby, most are born with their eyes open, or else crying, but she was born silent and with her eyes closed. The best Medic. Ninja couldn't figure out what to do. Even the legendary Sannin, Tsunade didn't know what to do. Then the 3rd Hokage took a look at her, and proclaimed that she was going to die. But then the 4th Hokage found out a way to save her. He used a Secret Forbidden Jutsu he'd been developing and saved her. Unfortunately, for this Jutsu to work, it required two sacrifices; her parents.

And so, without parents to teach her the Ninja way, she was passed around every Clan in Konoha and some in other villages as well, so they could each take care of her in turn.

Then when she was two, she became ill. Very ill. The 3rd Hokage preformed another Jutsu the 4th had also developed. With this Jutsu, the Head of every Clan that had taken care of her donated certain qualities to make her strong. For example, the Uchiha's gave her the Sharingan, and so forth.

Thus, this Jutsu worked, and in the combination of all these different powers inside of her, the 4th's Jutsu, transformed her into a 'Moon Guardian'. And being this, she is allowed to use 'Moon' Jutsu's that we can't. But…there's also a bad side to this great power."

"This is starting to sound too much like Sailor Moon," Naruto muttered. "What could be so bad?!"

"Uae has a moon shaped birthmark somewhere on her body. If she allowed someone to touch it, even the lightest stroke, she'll die. That's why she doesn't like being touched at all."

"So you're saying…that if someone touched this mark, she'll die?"

"A slow and painful death."

"And because she was passed around…that's how you know her?" asked Naruto still confused.

Sasuke nodded and said, "Yes. But from all the Clans and families that took care of her, she only became fond of two: the Uchiha Clan and that Sand Clan Gaara's from." Naruto gasped and Sasuke continued.

"She spent more and more time with the Uchiha's that we all thought of her as part of the family. Then, the day before my brother…did _that _to our clan…I gave her the navy blue ring as a symbol of the affection I had for her. But when Itachi killed our entire clan the next day…I thought he had killed her as well." Sasuke shut his eyes at the memory, and as Naruto's eyes grew wide with understanding, tears started streaking down Sasuke's face.

**To Be Continued…**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

_"What if Kankuro is right?" _Uae thought to herself as she walked closer and closer to Gaara. _"Well, in any case, I know what to do in case he doesn't recognize me."_

"Hello Gaara," she said softly as she arrived at his side. Gaara looked up and stared at her.

"...Uae?" He whispered.

She nodded. "It's me Gaara-kun." _"Maybe this will be easier than I thought."_

Gaara stood and said to her, "I can't believe…that you…are…stupid enough to think I'd fall for that!" Immediately, his sand clone appeared and grabbed Uae around the neck, choking her.

"P-please…Gaara…it's me!" She choked out.

"No! Uae, the REAL Uae, is dead! AND I KILLED HER!" Gaara yelled, causing the sand clone's hold on Uae's neck tighter. Tears ran down Uae's face, and then she disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

"A shadow clone?" Gaara said to himself as he looked wildly around. He closed his eyes, his whole body shaking. He had to calm himself, he knew, or risk turning into the Shukaku in front of everyone.

"Gaara."

He opened his eyes to the sight of Uae. "I've got you now!" He yelled as his sand flew at her. "Sand Coffin!"

Uae appeared calm as she hand as a 'stop sign'. The sand froze where it was, and as she moved her arm, moved away from her and re-entered Gaara's sand case. Gaara looked at his sand, to Uae, and back to his sand.

"Is this proof enough that it's really me talking to you? You know that only you and I can control this sand. Nobody else but us."

Gaara's gaze slowly met hers, as he said, "I-it really is you." Then suddenly he ran at her and engulfed her in a huge hug. "I thought I had killed you…I thought I had lost you forever."

Uae was about to say something to him for touching her, but didn't when she felt his fallen tears on her shoulder. She decided to let him hug her this time, and she hugged him back as Gaara cried into her arm.

**To Be Continued…**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Gaara was staring at Uae. He couldn't believe she had survived after all this time. "But…I don't understand why you are alive? I mean, I'm glad you are, but how? It doesn't make any sense. The sand should have suffocated you, or worse!"

"Well," Uae started, "it DID suffocate me. For a little bit at least. I was all out of chakra, so I couldn't move the sand away. When you got the sand off me, I was unconscious." She looked at him. "But you didn't kill me Gaara-kun. Actually, you're the one who saved me."

"Then…what happened when you woke up?" Gaara replied still staring. "Why didn't you go find me?"

"I was unconscious for nearly two days…and I lost my memory of that night. I left the Village Hidden in the Leaves to continue my training on my own. Only a few weeks ago I started remembering what had happened. When I realized what you had done for me, I went to the Village Hidden in the Sand. Your father, the Kazekage, told me that he'd sent you, Temari, and Kankuro to school here. So I left and…came here."

"Ok, so you got amnesia and couldn't remember anything?"

"Nothing."

"But where did you go to train?"

Uae sighed, clearly annoyed with all these questions. "I went back to my parents' old house in the Village hidden in the Rain. They had left me a very good amount of money, so I didn't go hungry if that's where you're heading."

Gaara blushed. It was as if she'd read his mind. He caught sight of her blood-red stoned ring and said, "I remember when I gave you that ring. Red was always my favorite color. So how long are you staying in Konoha? Being a road ninja, you like to move around a lot huh?"

She laughed. "Yes unfortunately. I'm staying as long as it takes to complete my mission." She stood as she said this, causing Gaara to jump in surprise.

"What mission?"

"You've become horribly conceited, Gaara-kun, no offense. We must correct that. I will attempt to teach you to love others, not just yourself." And then she walked away.

**To Be Continued…**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

As Uae walked back to Sasuke, Naruto and Sakura, the blood red ring turned navy once more.

Sasuke stood as she walked up to them, and for some reason he was unable to tear his eyes away from her body.

Uae stepped in front of Sakura and said, "I have attended to my business, so you are free to move again. Release!" and with that the purple chakra disappeared and Sakura stood eyeing Uae cautiously.

Uae ignored her and turned to Sasuke. "Do you know where I can rent a room to stay in as I'm in Konoha?"

Before Sasuke could answer, Naruto said, "Yeah! There's a free room in the apartment building me and Sasuke are staying in!"

Uae turned to Naruto and said, "Thank you. I will stay there, and on our way, I might as well tell you what happened the night I should have been dead."

She walked out of the arena with Naruto and Sasuke close behind her, leaving behind a very frightened looking Sakura as she glimpsed Uae's nails. They were painted purple. But not just any shade of purple.

The exact shade of purple the Akatsuki used.

_Meanwhile…_

The three ninjas walked in silence for awhile, and then Uae began, "I should probably start when Sasuke-kun gave me his ring…"

FLASHBACK

"Umm…Uae?" a young Sasuke said. "I want to give you something…" he handed a young Uae a small package that was badly wrapped.

Uae opened it, and put on the ring. "It's beautiful Sasuke-kun!" she said smiling. _"I can wear it with the ring Gaara-kun gave me," _she thought.

Sasuke blushed. He opened his mouth to say something else but was interrupted by his older brother, Itachi.

"Sasuke…Uae, mother says it is time for dinner." A young Itachi said. He looked at Uae who was still wearing the ring. Itachi grimaced, but said nothing as the three of them walked into the house.

Later that night, when all were asleep, Uae awoke to soft knocks on her door. Dazed and disoriented, she opened her bedroom door to see Itachi standing before her.

"Itachi-kun?" She said still sleepy.

"Come with me." He said simply. Uae followed without a word. He led her out of the house and into their yard where he trained. Without saying anything, he gave her a ring that looked similar to the one Sasuke had given her earlier, except this ring had a black stone.

"Hmmm? Oh. Thank you Itachi-san." She mumbled.

She struggled to stay awake as Itachi said, "Uae, we both know that you have great power. You could have easily graduated the Academy when I did or even earlier, but you didn't for the sake of Sasuke." Uae nodded in agreement and he continued. "Tomorrow, I'm going to rid myself of the Uchiha Clan. I don't want to kill you, Uae, so I must know if you are with me, or against me." He looked at Uae; she was swaying, barely awake. He caught her as she fell forward in deep slumber.

"I will get your answer tomorrow." Then he picked her up, and took her back to her room so she could sleep.

The next day, Uae woke up early. As she dressed, thoughts of the night before came flooding back to her mind. When she found the black stoned ring on her finger, she knew it was real and not just some nightmare caused by eating too much. She searched for Itachi, but he was nowhere in sight. She faked an illness in order to stay home from school and urged Sasuke to go without her.

That evening while Sasuke was at school, Itachi began his massacre. Uae informed everyone at once, but she knew only she could stop Itachi.

Already half on the clan was dead, and she had to stop him quickly. But with Itachi using Sharingan, she couldn't just skip up to him and say, "stop".

The moon was directly above her as she performed the hand signs needed to perform her Moon Jutsu. "Moon Style! Secret Forbidden Invisible Jutsu!" Immediately, Uae became invisible. Not even the Sharingan would be able to copy her Jutsu.

When she finally found Itachi, she was too late. Every member (except Sasuke of course) was dead.

Then suddenly…immense pain shot throughout Uae's body. Her Jutsu failed, and she fell backwards onto her back. She looked up and realized what had caused this.

A Lunar Eclipse.

She felt like a fool for exposing herself like that. She knew that she was at her weakest during this type of eclipse. During it, she could not use any Moon Jutsu's, causing the pain as her powers slowly sinked away.

Itachi walked over to her and watched her with an amused expression as she winced and twitched at the pain in her body. He picked her up, and before she knew it, they were in a small clearing in a forest. Itachi laid her softly on the ground, and said, "You were too late, Uae. I just have to kill Sasuke and the Uchiha Clan will be no more! Hmmm, maybe I won't kill Sasuke just yet…I'll leave him alone, so that when he gets older, he'll want revenge on me…he'll fight me…and lose!"

"Don't…please don't…kill…Sasuke!" Uae gasped.

"I think I like my plan enough that I will do what you ask. But what do you say? Will you join me? I need to know if I need to kill you."

"Itachi…I…" But before she could finish, sand flew out of nowhere, and wrapped itself around Uae's body, and quickly dragged her out of sight.

END FLASHBACK

The three arrived at the apartment building as Uae finished. Sasuke was silent as he remembered that night. Uae paid for her room (which was across from Sasuke's and next to Naruto's) and after a brief goodnight, each ninja disappeared behind their own door, engaged in their own thoughts.

**To Be Continued…**


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

The next morning, Uae awoke to knocks on her apartment door. She looked over to her clock. 8:13 AM. Grunting slightly, she put on her bathrobe and opened her door.

"Hi Uae! I was wondering if you wanted to get some ramen with me." It was Naruto.

"N-Naruto-san?" Uae asked still half asleep. "Do you know what time it is?!"

"Er—" but before Naruto could respond, Sasuke opened his door.

He stood staring at Naruto, then with one glance at Uae in her bath robe, he closed his eyes and shook his head. "Naruto, you idiot."

"What? I was just asking her if she wanted to get some ra—"

"Naruto, Uae is not a morning person. She was born during a LUNAR eclipse, not a solar one. She needs her rest or… well, look at her eyes Naruto. You can tell she's tired."

Naruto looked at Uae's eyes and gasped. They weren't her usual shade of lime green, but now a shocking bright yellow. "As you see," Sasuke said breaking the silence, "her eyes change sometimes."

"…I'm sorry I woke you Uae. Go back to sleep."

"I-it's alright Naruto-san. I w-will eat r-r-ramen with you some other time." Then Uae silently closed her door.

**Later**

Uae walked quickly to the ramen shop, hoping to find Naruto there; her eyes back to their normal shade of lime green. As she walked, she got a strange feeling she was being followed. "Byakuugan." She muttered; her eyes turning silver. She kept walking, slower this time, but closed her eyes and looked around herself in a 360° angle. She saw no one that would be a threat to her, but she could _sense_ someone. Uae de-activated her Byakuugan and stored the eerie feeling into the back of her mind.

Sure enough, Naruto was slurping up his noodles, while Sasuke sat next to him, making faces of pure disgust. Uae sat next to Sasuke, and at first, each ninja remained silent. Then, "Uae, would you tell me something?"

"Hmm? What is it Naruto-san?" Uae said looking at him with a blank expression.

Naruto played with his noodles and then said, "I've meaning to ask you for awhile now…How… How did you injure your hand? You never told us in your story."

_"He's right…Uae never explained that to us… what is she hiding from me?" _Sasuke thought as he tried to read Uae's face. But her face was unreadable. That was one quality Uae had developed on her own.

"…You don't miss a thing do you Naruto-san?" Uae said grinning. Her smile faded though, when she continued, "Well, I'm afraid I can't tell you that yet. Let's just say that I ran into your brother, Sasuke…"

Naruto choked on his noodles, and Sasuke snapped his head up to look at Uae. "You _ran into _Itachi?"

She nodded without a word.

"But, what happened? When was this? Uae, why didn't you tell me?" Sasuke said, his voice rising slightly.

Uae looked at the clock, and completely ignoring Sasuke's questions, said, "I'm sorry Naruto-san, Sasuke-kun, but I just realized I'm late for a very important meeting." And with that, she ran off.

**Meanwhile**

It was starting to rain. Sprinkle more like. Gaara of the Sand was running through it though. He didn't care if he or his sand got wet. He was supposed to be meeting Uae at a small clearing in the woods. He didn't know why Uae had suggested that place; after all, that's where he had rescued her from Itachi all those years ago. Now he was late.

He finally reached the clearing as the rain shortened. Uae was no where in sight. "Figures." He muttered to himself. "Who'd want to meet with me in the rain? Huh, who'd want to meet with me at all?" He turned, and slowly walked back up the path he had made getting there.

"Gaara! Gaara, wait, I'm here!" It was Uae's voice. He turned quickly in time to see Uae running through the bushes; her hair abnormally messy. _"So she was late too, huh?" _He thought.

"I've been waiting for hours!" Gaara complained.

"Oh, be quiet. I know you just got here yourself."

Gaara blushed slightly. He could never fool Uae. "So, now what? How are you going to teach me what love is?" They both sat down on the grass, facing each other.

"I have a theory… close your eyes Gaara-kun." He did. "Now I'm going to say a word, and you say the first thing that pops into your head, ok?" He nodded. "Ok… sand." "Shukaku," Gaara said quietly.

"Temari."

"Annoying brat." He answered, smiling.

"Kankuro."

"…Puppet."

"Umm… Uae."

Gaara opened his eyes. "…Next word please." And closed them again.

"Ugh, fine."

Silence.

"…Kazekage."

"Father…work."

"Moon."

"Uae." He said promptly.

It went on for hours until Uae said, "Yashamaru."

Gaara opened his eyes once more. He looked away, and then disappeared in a cloud of smoke. Uae sighed. She had thought this would happen. So she stood and walked back to her apartment, the moon shining brilliantly above her.

**To Be Continued…**


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Uae's meetings with Gaara went on for days; each ending when Uae would say a word Gaara didn't want to respond to, and Gaara himself disappearing in a cloud of smoke. On their fifth meeting, Uae found improvement in Gaara when she said, "Uae" and he answered, "my only true friend".

Afterwards, Uae was about to walk into the hallway where her room is, when she heard her name. "Naruto, you don't know anything about Uae!" Sasuke said angrily. Uae froze where she stood and listened.

"Sasuke listen to me. I'm only telling you what Sakura told me. She saw Uae's nails, and they are the exact same shade the Akatsuki's members' nails. I'm not trying to jump to conclusions here, but what if Uae is working for the Akatsuki? I mean, we don't even know where she disappears to everyday!"

"No!" Sasuke yelled. "No. You're wrong Naruto. She would never betray me like that. And Sakura is a fool; why should you or I believe her?"

Then Uae heard the two separate apartment doors slam close, and she walked into her room. She leaned against the door to her room and sunk to the floor. She sat there for a few minutes, and then suddenly she stood up and started rummaging around inside her closet. Finally finding the piece of clothing, she put it on and stood in front of the mirror.

_"I look different," _she thought. "_Dangerous... Sinister even."_

It was true. The piece of clothing did make her look different. But then again, it wasn't a NORMAL piece of clothing.

It was a long, black cloak with red clouds on it; An Akatsuki cloak.

"So it has finally dawned on them that I have something to do with the Akatsuki Clan."

**To Be Continued…**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

The day after Uae had heard Sasuke and Naruto talking about her was a cloudy one. Irritated at the humidity in the air, Uae tried taming her hay stack of light purple hair. She gave up quickly though, for her hair had a mind of its own.

She walked out of her door, and crashed into Sakura.

"Sakura-chan! Watch where you're going!" Uae said as she got up from the floor.

"I'm sorry, Uae! I just wanted to ask you…if you would like…me to help heal your hand."

Uae looked from Sakura to her injured hand, and grimaced. She had tried everything to heal it, but she had a theory that she needed another Medic. Nin. To help heal it. "You're a Medic. Nin. Sakura?"

"Y-yes." Sakura said simply.

Uae sighed and nodded. "When are you free?"

"Well, now if you'd like."

"Alright, now. Your home? I'm afraid I don't have many ingredients for healing wounds like these."

Sakura nodded and led Uae to her home, where both Uae and Sakura's glowing hands (Uae's hand was glowing purple of course) healed Uae's injury.

**Meanwhile**

Sasuke sat on his bed, alone. _"I'll do it today." _He thought to himself._ "Today I'll tell Uae how much I love her."_ He stood up and faced the mirror. "And I'll ask her about the nail polish, and her injured hand." He said quietly to himself.

Sasuke smiled as he imagined what he would say to Uae, what she would reply, and finally, he imagined what would happen if he, Sasuke Uchiha, could make Uae love him like all the other silly girls did.

Still smiling, he left his room to find Uae.

**Later**

Uae couldn't believe it. Her hand was completely healed. More than that, she was surprised that Sakura had pulled off being alone with Uae, healing her hand. Now Uae was walking back to her apartment, when Sasuke called out to her.

"Uae! Hey, Uae!"

She turned, and there he was running toward her. "What is it Sasuke-kun?"

Panting slightly, Sasuke said, "I…have…to talk…to you." Then, regaining control of his breathing, he said, "Let's talk in my room."

Uae followed Sasuke wondering what on earth Sasuke wanted to tell her.

**In Sasuke's Room**

"…Uae…"

She blinked. "What?"

Sasuke sighed before answering, "How did you injure your hand?"

She stared at him. "Er—well, Sasuke-kun, Itachi was the one who injured it."

Without thinking, Sasuke blurted out, "You're not working for the Akatsuki Clan are you?!" He immediately knew that this was the wrong thing to say, because Uae's eyes got watery, and with her sadness, turned light blue. She burst into tears. Sasuke took her into his arms, and patted her awkwardly on the back, waiting for her to speak.

"S-Sasuke-kun. I w-was with the A-A-Akatsuki Cl-Clan for a short while. I left shortly after joining! But I s-swear that I am not working against you."

Sasuke looked into her eyes relieved that Naruto and Sakura's idiotic theory was false. Purely on impulse, Sasuke leaned toward Uae and kissed her softly on her rosy cheeks, then again on her lips. Uae, shocked, automatically froze at the touch and sudden closeness of Sasuke. He leaned away to see her reaction. When she said nothing, he leaned in once more, and kissed her.

Shocked, Uae tried resisting. _"What is he doing?! No! I don't want my first kiss to be like this!"_ she thought as she felt his tongue force its way into her mouth. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close.

After a few minutes, she no longer tried resisting; she kissed him back. _"What on earth are you doing, Uae?"_ She thought to herself. _"Think of your priorities!" _Sasuke's hand started going up her shirt. _"Oh who cares?"_ another part of Uae argued. _"Sasuke's a good kisser!"_ Uae ran her hands through his hair. _"NO! STOP!"_ the sensible part of her screamed in her head. _"Think of mother and father! Think of… think of Gaara."_

Uae froze. Sasuke was still kissing her, and his hand was still inside her shirt. She opened her eyes and pushed Sasuke gently away. She felt guilty. There she was, kissing Sasuke while Gaara was waiting for her.

"Sasuke, no, stop this."

He blinked. "Uae… I love you."

Uae stood. She fixed her shirt and walked to the door. Her eyes turned back to lime green. She said nothing, but gave him a regretful look before departing.

Outside in the hall way, Uae created a shadow clone. "Go to Gaara. Tell him that our meeting is cancelled for today." The clone nodded and disappeared in a cloud of purple smoke. Uae walked into her room, and closed the door. She immediately felt the presence of two other ninja. She closed her eyes. She didn't need her Byakuugan to tell her who it was. Uae activated her Sharingan and opened her eyes.

"So you've finally found me, Itachi-kun."

**To Be Continued…**


	11. Chapter 11

Well after many months of writers block and procrastination, i can finally say, ITS DONE! YAY! how fun right?

* * *

**Chapter 11**

Uae pinned Kisame to her wall with her force field jutsu before he could even grab his sword. "Stay out of this Kisame-san. This is between Itachi and me."

Kisame tried struggling against her jutsu but couldn't move a muscle. "Don't even bother Kisame," Itachi said. "I couldn't even break free when she captured me in it." As he spoke, the stone on Uae's ring, which was navy, turned black. "It has taken many days since our little encounter after you fled the Akatsuki to find you. I see you've healed your hand. I healed mine too, but it was difficult. Your Jutsu's leave behind a very infuriating scar that is hard to break free from." Itachi held up his hand for her to see.

Uae had no reason to be afraid. She knew that she was stronger and much faster than Itachi. So then why, she asked herself, did she have this strange feeling?

"What do you want Itachi-kun?" Uae asked.

"Want? Let's see… I want you. Or better," he took step toward her, "I want you to want me. You've known since we were kids that I wanted us to be together." He laughed in spite of himself and continued, "But you never wanted me. You wanted," he scoffed at the name, "Gaara of the Sand. I don't know why really. I am much more powerful than he is. You must've broken Sasuke's heart when you told him you did not return his affections."

Uae looked away; an ashamed and hurt expression on her face. All at once, her calm façade fell away, revealing a vulnerable and heartbreaking side of Uae that was never seen before.

"You never told him?" Itachi asked with an amused expression on his face. "You told me in our encounter outside the Village hidden in the Sand remember?"

**Flashback**

Uae was resting on a rock in the middle of a forest when she heard her name. "No, resting already Uae? You barely left the Akatsuki. Surely, knowing that I saw you in our meeting, you knew I'd come after you."

Uae looked up. Itachi and Kisame walked out from behind a tree. "Itachi-kun! Kisame-san!" She quickly stood and took out a kunai knife.

Suddenly Itachi was behind her. "What good will that do you against me?" With his own kunai he stabbed her back. Uae gasped and disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

"Surprise, Itachi-kun." He turned and she punched him. Hard. He flew into a tree, and quickly stood, mindlessly rubbing his check where she had struck him.

"You're faster than the last time I saw you." Then, seeing that she had activated her Sharingan he said, "Kisame, leave us." Kisame left without a word. "We don't need to fight, Uae. You know what I feel for you."

Uae scoffed, "You do not love me. You love my powers."

Itachi shrugged. "Either way, you must have some sort of feelings for me if you still have the ring I gave you." He gestured to the black stoned ring on her finger.

"I'm sorry to burst your bubble, Itachi-kun, but I do not love you."

Itachi sighed, "We could have been great and powerful together." In one swift movement he sent a dozen kunai knives flying toward her. She dodged them easily but in her distraction, Itachi ran at her with another knife that had some kind of poison on it. "Gaara's not here to protect you now, Uae!" He yelled.

Thinking fast she did hand signs. "Moon Style! Lunar Strike!" And just as Itachi struck her left hand with the weapon, purple lightning came down from the sky and struck Itachi's own hand.

Uae screamed as the flesh on her skin started disintegrating. Itachi's own hand was bleeding severely. Wincing at the pain in her hand, she quickly trapped Itachi in her force field.

"The only way to beat me, Itachi, is to kill me. And the only way to kill me… well you already know, don't you?" She whispered as she cradled her hand to her chest. Uae turned and fled without looking back. She was too much of a coward to kill him. She could have easily ended his life, but just the thought of _her_ Itachi-kun dying by her own hand made her shudder.

It wasn't until when she was almost outside the village hidden in the leaves, did she call back her chakra.

**End Flashback**

Uae was silent, her expression still defenseless. All at once, her serene façade came pouring back, and her face was a mask; hiding her pain. "Yes, I remember."

"Surely Gaara knows of your affections?"

Uae looked squarely at Itachi. "No. He does not."

"I'm wasting my time here then." Itachi said as he ran and flew out of Uae's window, and towards the clearing where Gaara was.

"Shannarou," Uae muttered under her breath as she ran at full speed after Itachi.

**To Be Continued…**


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

Gaara was pacing; restless and, astonishingly, anxious. He felt there was something that Uae was keeping from him, yet somehow he did not want to believe that Uae could be keeping him out in the cold. He sighed and looked towards the sky, his red hair falling over his eyes, and noticed for the first time since he had arrived in the clearing that Uae was late.

It was an ominous feeling he had inside, and he suddenly thought of many things at once: Itachi Uchiha, whom he had saved her from all those years ago, loved Uae with an infatuation so strong that he would do anything to win her and her powers; Sasuke Uchiha who wore his heart on his sleeve so anyone could tell just by looking at him staring at Uae with lust that he adored her. Naruto Uzumaki, the fool, who was developing a crush (stronger than the one he had on Sakura) on Uae. Neji Hyuuga who wanted to be just as powerful with Byakuugan as she was; his admiration with her. All he other fools who thought they could win her heart. With a wild gasp escaping his throat, things suddenly fell into place for him.

Something Uae didn't want Gaara to know… Something _he_ wouldn't have kept from _her_… Something that had Uae and himself moving in close proximity with each other…

"Itachi Uchiha," he spat, as if the name would burn his tongue if he kept it inside. He was suddenly shaking with a rage he did not understand. Why did he care if Itachi, or any of the other fools, wanted to win Uae?

"Gaara-kun," Uae's clone appeared before him, snapping Gaara back to the present. "Uae-Chan sent me… She wants me to tell you that the meeting today is cancelled…"

Gaara realized his suspicions were correct. "She's in trouble isn't she?"

The clone shrugged. "She's either in trouble, or she's going to be," And disappeared.

**Over with Uae**

Uae sent hundreds of kunai knives and paper bombs at Itachi, and managed to make him stop. They faced each other, each perched on top of a light pole, making direct eye contact with their blood red eyes, each trying to break through the other's defenses for the Illusion Sharingan, Mangekyou.

"I won't let you harm Gaara-kun," Uae whispered, though she knew that Itachi could her as well as she could hear him.

"You wouldn't be protecting him so much if you knew the truth… Gaara helped me murder the Uchiha's that night." He whispered back.

"Liar," she snarled.

Itachi smirked. "So much for love and honesty."

In a rage, Uae flung herself at him and began her special 264-palm-defense with byakugan.

She began to sob uncontrollably and stopped attacking only to suddenly embrace Itachi's unconscious body and whisper, "Gaara needs me… you wouldn't understand…like him, I was treated with disdain and abhorrence. No one ever saw me for who I was, but for my looks and powers. He was my first friend…. And I love him Itachi-kun."

Uae left him there and barely noticing that it was twilight, and the moon was rising, or that her leg was bleeding excessively, she set out at full speed toward the clearing where she knew Gaara's stubbornness and intuition would keep him waiting.

**In the Clearing**

"Uae…" Gaara gasped her name as she somewhat literally flew into the clearing, and into his arms; her leg limp with the loss of blood. He held her close and tensed, waiting for the fury— both his and hers—(his for being left out in the cold, and hers for him not obeying her request to leave) but it was only calm and quiet in the meadow.

He could almost taste the sweetness of reunion in the air, a separate fragrance from the perfume of her hair; the emptiness left when they were apart and mixed with his anxiety left its own bitter aftertaste, something he didn't consciously notice until now that it was removed.

He shook his head as they parted, trying to think of an explanation as to why it was that he was thinking about this and feeling this way. But he just couldn't put his finger on it…

"Gaara-kun you have to get away from here!" She said furiously. "I thought I sent a shadow clone to tell you to do so!"

"Uae, I'm not an idiot. What's going on?"

"Gaara just please listen I—" she broke off as she suddenly swayed her right arm over her head and swiftly turned around, making the sand in Gaara's gourd move with the motion and surround both her and Gaara from Itachi's kunai.

Uae allowed the sand to fall back down and automatically surround itself around Gaara, and angled herself so that she stood in between Itachi and her love, Gaara.

Itachi coughed up blood, "Gaara would you like to watch me kill her?"

"I will never let you harm her," he growled.

Itachi laughed at his tone, "Touchy."

"Leave him out of this." Uae said.

"Oh of course one way or another he's going to— Oh. Little brother, nice of you to join us here. Now it'll be like old times, huh?"

Uae's shocked expression grew into a guilty look of shame. Sasuke stepped out from behind a tree. "Uchiha Itachi… Brother." Sasuke automatically started doing hand signs, but Uae and Gaara both shook their heads vigorously at him.

As Sasuke's voice reached Uae, her black stoned ring changed to navy, then to red, then back to black. Over and over again, as if it was not able to make up its mind, or as if sensing that the three ninja, which represented each color, were all together at the same time with Uae. The stone kept repeating that pattern, red, blue, black.

Uae quickly made two shadow clones, one to protect Gaara, the other to protect Sasuke. "Come now Itachi." She said as she stalked toward him. She promptly removed from her leg and secured her Hidden Leaf Village head band around her forehead and tightened her Hidden Sand Village finger-less gloves before taking her fighting stance. "Let's match the powers of Sabaku No Uae Uchiha, Moon Guardian against Itachi Uchiha of the Akatsuki, shall we?"

And the fighting began.

Itachi made two shadow clones, too, so Gaara and Sasuke, along with Uae's shadow clones, were kept busy as well.

None of the four ninja's realized that the moon was directly above them, as if watching carefully to determine the fights results.

It wasn't until after Uae sent Itachi flying into a large tree, that she screamed in pain, and fell onto her back; twitching and wincing and grimacing in excruciating pain like she did all those years ago in that very same clearing, when Gaara had saved her life.

Like the time before, she looked up into the sky, gasping for breath, and saw what had caused her powers to agonizingly slip away; her only flaw, her only weakness.

A Lunar Eclipse.

**To Be Continued…**


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13-The End**

The Lunar Eclipse was just beginning, and thus so was Uae's pain. In years to come Uae would never forget the pain she felt. Sasuke abruptly stopped fighting when he heard Uae shout out in pain, leaving Itachi's clone to trap him in the illusion Sharingan.

Gaara quickly put an end to Itachi's clone, and ran to Uae's side as she lay on the floor. "Uae," he breathed, his eyes full of ache because he could not help her. He did not notice Itachi creeping up behind him with a kunai in his hemorrhaged hand.

Wheezing slightly, Uae realized what Itachi was about to do. "No!" she whispered as she pushed Gaara away from her; Itachi struck her right hand, tearing through and ripping off her Sand Village glove; she screamed from the new pain in her body. Gaara's eyes grew huge as he comprehended the sacrifice Uae made for him.

Itachi was wounded very much, and he fell down to his knees panting for air. Uae's powers were almost drained; her shadow clones disappeared, and far away inside her apartment, Kisame was freed from her Jutsu.

Sasuke was still struggling against Itachi's clone, but was getting close to winning against him. Gaara's sand clone ran at Itachi to attack, but even with his wounds, Itachi was able to dodge it and fight Gaara; Uae was still breathless and full of throbbing pain.

Out of nowhere, Kisame appeared and held Gaara back from Itachi; his sword around Gaara's neck. Itachi pushed his hair out of his eyes and said, "Thank you Kisame. I'm guessing that Uae's powers are almost gone…" As he turned to look at her, some thing caught his eye.

A crescent shaped birth mark crossing from her wrist to the middle of her hand.

The birth mark that, if touched, would cause her a slow and painful death was located on her right wrist and hand.

With a snicker he slowly walked toward her. "No…" She breathed, sensing that he had seen her mark.

Itachi bent down and sat next to her. "I'll ask you one more time, Uae. Do you love me? Will you join me and share your powers?" His hand traced the vein just above her birth mark. Behind him, Gaara was attempting to struggle against Kisame to get to Uae. He didn't know why, but he didn't like that Itachi was touching her.

"Itachi, come closer," Uae whispered, her body still aching from the pain. Itachi leaned close to her face to hear her answer. "Itachi-kun… I will never love you," and she looked at Gaara.

With a jealous rage, Itachi put his whole hand on her mark.

Uae screamed as the fresher and more potent torture spread slowly throughout her.

"A pity," Itachi said, his eyes not showing the least bit of sorrow or regret as he watched her twist and turn in agony. All he did was whisper something in her ear, and kiss her pale mouth. He then stood, and calling Kisame, left Uae to die.

As soon as Kisame had released Gaara, Gaara ran the few feet between him and Uae. Sasuke, who by this time finally managed to fight off the clone, also ran to her side and kneeled down beside her like Gaara.

Uae's mark was glowing. She could hardly breathe now, and her eyes filled with tears as she stared into both pairs of eyes filled with worry, anger, and (in Sasuke's case) love.

"S-Sasuke-kun… please forgive… me… I… n-never… meant for… you to t-think… that," she gasped, "I loved you… be… strong… You…you will…be faced… with many… challenges… Be brave… I know… that you… will do the… right thing…when the time comes… Just remember this, S-Sasuke-kun… 'Does the walker… choose the path…or does the path… choose the walker…?'" Uae's breathing was becoming more and more forced as her life started slipping away.

"Uae, I swear to you, I will get revenge on Itachi for this," Sasuke said. He took her left hand in his; tears swelled over and poured down his face.

Gaara was silent, a dark fury building up inside of him against Itachi. He could quite literally kill him for doing this, he wanted to, but why…?

Uae's tears came more rapidly as she turned to face Gaara. "Gaara-kun… We're not… very different from each other. I know what it… feels like to be afraid of… I know what it… feels like to be hated…. I know what it feels like to be alone… to be unloved for who you are… Gaara, I've always… wanted to… to tell you… that I… I…" Gaara bent forward closer to her.

"What? Tell me what?"

"Gaara…I… I love you."

Sasuke snapped his head up and looked at Gaara. Gaara was dazed. Someone loved him… more importantly, Uae loved him.

"Don't leave me," he said suddenly. "Uae, please, don't—don't go!"

"Gaara, I have… no choice," she put her hand to his face. Her whole body was glowing now. She was having difficulty breathing and she had to concentrate to just touch his face. "I only… regret not being… able… to teach you… how to love."

He held her hand to his face; tears streaking down his cheeks, his mask of no emotion breaking away. "I need you, Uae. I-I'm not brave like you."

She shook her head sadly. "No Gaara… it was I… who… needed you…"

"Uae, I—"

"Sabaku No Gaara, remember me." Uae whispered, with one last gasp of air.

"Uae, I love you!" He said abruptly, finally realizing that he was in love with her all this time, only he didn't know it.

He thought he could see her almost smile, but her hand went limp; he was too late.

She was gone.

"No, no. No!" He sobbed uncontrollably as Sasuke silently stood and walked away, allowing Gaara to have a final moment with his love.

Uae's body glowed brilliantly; Gaara had to shield his eyes. Then, as suddenly as it began, her body was gone, and in its place, was a small mound of purple moon dust. Gaara stared in wonder as it swirled on its own (there was no wind) and twirled and coiled upwards and to the moon.

When all the dust was gone, Gaara sat staring at the moon, holding Uae's glove which was the only thing that was left behind. His eyes were watery, but he did not cry.

"You did teach me to love, Uae." He whispered. "You taught me to love you."

As he stood and started to walk back to his home, clutching Uae's glove, it started raining falling stars; they disappeared just before hitting the ground, but curiously left behind traces of purple star dust.

In years to come, it would happen again; the falling stars and the unmistakable trace of purple star dust. And when it does, Gaara would never be the same again, because he will never forget the tragic death of the one girl he loved, Sabaku No Uae Uchiha, Moon Guardian.

**The End**


	14. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

"Sabaku No Gaara, remember me."

Uae suddenly appeared in a place unknown to her. She was on her knees, bending down in a river. She looked around herself, and noticed that there was no sun; just an odd gray light shining from nowhere, and swirling mist. The water was cold, yet when she stood, her clothes were not damp.

"Curious," she said to herself. In front of her was a vast waterfall. She walked toward it, and then turned around.

Directly behind where she was standing, a giant circular window hung. Through it, Uae could see the land of the Living. She saw Gaara walking away, clutching her glove. Uae looked at her right hand, preparing to grimace at her crescent moon birthmark, the cause of her death, but instead, gaped at what she didn't see.

Her mark was gone.

She snapped her head up to the window again, just in time to see falling stars leaving behind purple star dust. "Curious," she said again. Somehow, the star dust was calling to her, yet she didn't quite understand. "I am dead. I can not go back."

Uae turned her back on the land of the Living, and walked toward the First (out of Nine) Gate of Death.

She hesitated just before walking through it.

"Everyone has a time to die." She whispered. Then, holding her head up high, and thinking of her love, Sabaku No Uae Uchiha walked through the Gate towards Death.

* * *

I was quite sad to kill of Uae. I begged her and gave her other possible endings to the story... but that stubborn girl just wont budge. Gaara couldnt even convince her!! yeah but anyways, there might be a sequal depending on how well this story goes. :D


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